Potential application of Aloe Vera-derived plant-based cell in powering wireless device for remote sensor activation

Abstract

It is well proven that electrical energy can be harvested from the living plants which can be used as a potential renewable energy source for powering wireless devices in remote areas where replacing or recharging the battery is a difficult task. Therefore, harvesting electrical energy from living plants in remote areas such as in farms or forest areas can be an ideal source of energy as these areas are rich with living plants. The present paper proposes a design of a power management circuit that can harness, store and manage the electrical energy which is harvested from the leaves of Aloe Barbadensis Miller (Aloe Vera) plants to trigger a transmitter load to power a remote sensor. The power management circuit consists of two sections namely; an energy storage system that acts as an energy storage reservoir to store the energy harvested from the plants as well as a voltage regulation system which is used to boost and manage the energy in accordance to a load operation. The experimental results show that the electrical energy harvested from the Aloe Vera under a specific setup condition can produce an output of 3.49 V and 1.1 mA. The harvested energy is being channeled to the power management circuit which can boost the voltage to 10.9 V under no load condition. The harvested energy from the plants boosted by the power management circuit can turn ON the transmitter automatically to activate a temperature and humidity sensor to measure the environmental stimuli periodically with a ton of 1.22 seconds and toff of 0.46 seconds. This proves that this new source of energy combined with a power management circuit can be employed for powering the wireless sensor network for application in the Internet of Things (IoT).

Plant Base Renewable Energy to Power Nanoscale Sensors

“…The CAM process allows them to withstand drought because their stomata open only at night to prevent the water from escaping via evaporation in the hot sun [41]. Researchers have paid attention to harvesting electrical energy from Aloe vera plants [42][43][44]. The major disadvantages of Aloe vera plants are that once the electrodes are inserted in leaf, leaf dyes faster and its survival rate is very short due to chemical reaction between electrode and the gel of Aloe vera despite its hardness and unique self-repairing ability.…”

Self-Enclosed Bio-Photoelectrochemical Cell in Succulent Plants

“…33 Studies of different metal electrodes embedded into cacti species reported that the highest electrochemical performance can be achieved by using copper and zinc electrodes in Aloe vera, 34 with the voltage enhanced by connecting multiple leaves. 31,34 Rather than exploiting the internal electrolytes of Cacti species to fabricate galvanic cells, other studies have shown the potential of such plants to provide the nutrients for soil bacteria for plant-MFC type energy production. 35,36 In such systems, organic molecules produced by photosynthesis are released via degraded roots enabling the survival of bacteria, which can be utilized to produce electricity by performing EET to donate electrons to an anode that is embedded in the soil.…”

“…The thick cuticle protects the leaf from severe water loss limiting the release of water and biological metabolites that exist inside the inner aqueous environment of the leaf. The internal solution is quite complex and dynamic, containing polysaccharides, lipids, amino acids, metabolites, minerals, and proteins . Previous studies have indicated that the complex internal water-based solution could serve as an electrolyte and even provide a source of current.…”

“…The internal solution is quite complex and dynamic, containing polysaccharides, lipids, amino acids, metabolites, minerals, and proteins. 31 Previous studies have indicated that the complex internal water-based solution could serve as an electrolyte and even provide a source of current. Extracts of the leaves of Ipomoea aquatica served as an efficient electrolyte in an electrochemical cell 32 and an electrochemical cell was fabricated using cactus (Opuntia dillenii Grahm) stem as an electrolyte, producing an energy density of 175 mWh kg −1 .…”

“…Extracts of the leaves of Ipomoea aquatica served as an efficient electrolyte in an electrochemical cell and an electrochemical cell was fabricated using cactus (Opuntia dillenii Grahm) stem as an electrolyte, producing an energy density of 175 mWh kg –1 . Studies of different metal electrodes embedded into cacti species reported that the highest electrochemical performance can be achieved by using copper and zinc electrodes in Aloe vera, with the voltage enhanced by connecting multiple leaves. , Rather than exploiting the internal electrolytes of Cacti species to fabricate galvanic cells, other studies have shown the potential of such plants to provide the nutrients for soil bacteria for plant-MFC type energy production. , In such systems, organic molecules produced by photosynthesis are released via degraded roots enabling the survival of bacteria, which can be utilized to produce electricity by performing EET to donate electrons to an anode that is embedded in the soil. However, it has not yet been shown that photosynthetic solar energy conversion can be utilized directly in succulents.…”